Dreamland – BBC Animated Adventure

The six-part series, titled Dreamland, will premiere on the Doctor Who website and via the BBC Red Button service in the autumn, before being broadcast on BBC Two as part of CBBC. It will also be available on the BBC HD channel.
In Dreamland, Tennant’s Time Lord visits Roswell, the area in New Mexico rumoured to be the site of an alien landing. During a visit to a local diner, he stumbles across a mysterious alien artefact and ends up battling the evil Viperox and the US military.

Georgia Moffett voices the character of Cassie Rice, the Doctor’s companion. David Warner plays the leader of the ruthless Viperox.

The 45-minute long adaptation is written by Phil Ford, who has scripted episodes of Doctor Who, Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures.

Russell T Davies, Dreamland’s executive producer and the writer who brought Doctor Who back to the screen, said: “Dreamland is a remarkable project and I’m thrilled with it. Phil Ford is a wonderful writer and promises to send the Doctor into a whole new visual dimension.”

Back in the real world, Tennant will continue to play the Doctor in a series of special episodes before handing over to Matt Smith, who will take over the role in 2010.

David Tennant With On-Screen Daughter

Well talk about keeping it quiet, but every credit to David Tennant and single mother Georgia Moffett who have actually been dating for just over a year.

The couple certainly seemed “loved up” on a recent night out for a romantic meal at London’s The Ivy restaurant on Saturday.

Walking hand in hand, Georgia was all smiles even if the dapper dressed David seemed a bit more reluctant and uneasy in front of awaiting photographers.

To complete the Who connection she is also the daughter of Peter Davison, who played the Time Lord between 1982 and 1984, and American actress Sandra Dickinson.

Mr Davison said of his daughter’s relationship with David recently: ‘[When I asked if David was her boyfriend] Georgia barked at me: “No he isn’t!” But then I noticed that she had started referring to him as exactly that and bemoaning the fact that “her boyfriend was away” when David had to go off filming.

‘It can be odd when David comes round for Sunday lunch and we all sit at the table — me, an ex-Doctor Who, with my wife, and David, another Doctor Who, with my daughter.’

The pair have perhaps been coy about their relationship because of David’s infamous track record for romancing his leading ladies.

Last April David, who is currently filming his role as Lord Pomfrey in St Trinians, was reported to be dating second assistant director Jennie Fava, who moved to Cardiff to help film Doctor Who, which has been running since 1963.

Weeks earlier, he split with another BBC Wales staff member, Bethan Britton after a four-month relationship.

The Tenth Doctor With His Daughter

When the pair met she had been working in the corporation’s contracts office in the city when they met.

He was also linked to Kylie Minogue after the pop star appeared in the Christmas special, which featured a passionate kiss between the pair.

Tennant also had a two-year relationship with actress Sophia Myles.

They, too, met on set – when Miss Myles played Madame de Pompadour in a 2006 Dr Who episode.

But his relationship with Georgia, who played the Time Lord’s child Jenny in an episode entitled The Doctor’s Daughter, seems to be going the distance.

The actress, who has a six-year-old son named Tyler from a previous relationship, revealed after first meeting Tennant: ‘David is dishy, isn’t he?

‘He’s not only a good-looking but he is such a lovely, sweet guy.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1210241/Former-Doctor-Who-star-David-Tennant-takes-screen-daughter-romantic-date.html#ixzz0PnyjbGS2

So now if you want to get the latest information, news and gossip simply add the webmaster (little old me) “Martin DoctorWho”  as your facebook friend. that way every time I make  a new post, you’ll automatically receive it! Yippee!!!!

Of course this is also going to save me an awful lot of time which means I’ll be able to spend more time doing the most important jobs – reviewing new products and trawling for Doctor Who News!

You can let me know what you think of the new Facebook page directly from the site, or of course by commenting on DoctorWhoTorchwood.com

Thanks For Reading

Ed

So kiss it Star Wars and Star Trek (humble apologies but I’m trying to sound non-geeky just for a second) www.DoctorWhoTorchwood.com clearly rules and that pleases this geek!!!!!

Dr Who and Donna Road Feature - Sarah Myerscough with finished product

Sarah Myerscough is an artist based in the North West of England and currently working for Blackpool Illuminations.Her website is a showcase of her work at the Illuminations and previously as a model maker / artist at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and includes dozens of behind the scenes photos

Her own artwork is also offered for sale and the site features a timeline of her career in art so far.

Sarah Myerscough with Dalek Maquette

Illuminated road features of the Doctor, Oods, Sontaran Companions, etc.. along with animated 3D Daleks and Tardis have been lighting up Blackpool promenade from September to November, with more characters being added each year. Well worth a visit!

Tardis Road Feature - Sarah Myerscough with completed feature

 For more information about Blackpool Illuminations, Blackpool Illuminations official website is as follows:

Visit Blackpool

For more information on the Blackpool Doctor Who Museum, please visit:

Blackpool Doctor Who Museum

Note: Although she works for the Illuminations, the www.sarahmyerscough.co.uk website is a personal website. It does not represent the views of, nor is it endorsed by, Blackpool Illuminations, Blackpool Council or Visit Blackpool.

Ed’s Note:

I would like to thank Sarah for taking the time to submit all this information which highlights the great work that the team at Blackpool Illuminations HQ are doing, Blackpool has come on leaps and bounds over the past few years and has never been a more exciting place to visit, this has only been achieved by hard work and dedication of people like the Illuminations team coming up with new innovative ideas to attract today’s potential visitors, keep up the good work!!!!

Bleazy

Dalek Appears On Mountain

A 100ft Dalek has appeared on the side of a mountain which overlooks Belfast.

However, people living in the city are presumably safe enough from this particular inhabitant of Skaro as it is made from bed linen.

The ‘artwork’ was created on Black Mountain at the weekend by Denis Rush of the UT Events group.

The stunt comes ahead of a charity convention for fans of Doctor Who and a number of other sci-fi TV series at the Europa hotel in Belfast.

Skaro is the name of the Daleks’ home planet

“There was meant to be a giant question mark beside the Dalek, but I ran out of bed linen,” said Denis speaking to BBC News.

“I got permission from the woman who owns the field to do it. She was only too happy to help when she heard that the convention is in aid of the Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice.”

The giant Dalek took two days to make after Denis had ‘exterminated’ his family’s entire supply of bed sheets.

“The first day it was just myself up there and then on the second day my girlfriend Tory gave me a hand,” he said.

“I must have asked every single member of my family for any spare bed sheets they had.”

The Daleks were created by writer Terry Nation

“It was tough going as it must be a 50 degree slope, but it was definitely worth it.

“We don’t make any money out of our events and don’t have any marketing budget to speak of, so hopefully this will get people talking about our latest event.”

‘Vortex’ is billed as a one-day convention for fans of Doctor Who, Torchwood and the Sarah Jane Adventures.

Paul Marc Davis, who has appeared in all three shows, and Chipo Chung, who has played two different characters in recent series of Doctor Who, are to take part in the conference.

Gareth David Lloyd, who stars in the spin-off series Torchwood, will also be making the trip to Belfast.

Delegates will be able to have a look inside the Tardis and also get the chance to shake hands – you know what I mean – with a Dalek.

Popular

The Daleks were created by writer Terry Nation and designed by Raymond P. Cusick.

They were introduced in December 1963 in the second Doctor Who series, becoming an instant hit with viewers.

Last year, nine out of ten children in a National Trust survey were able to identify a Dalek correctly.

Only 47% of the children surveyed by the heritage charity were able to identify a barn owl.

Doctor Who boss reveals talk of Star Trek Crossover

RUSSELL T DAVIES has revealed that he had planned a crossover between the Doctor Who and Star Trek TV series.

Speaking to the Sunday Times, the Doctor Who showrunner said: “I would have loved to have done a Star Trek crossover. The very first year, we talked about it. Then Star Trek finally went off air.

“Landing the Tardis on board the Enterprise would have been magnificent. Can you imagine what their script department would have wanted, and what I would have wanted? It would have been the biggest battle.”

Davies quits the hit show after this year’s four specials, the first of which airs at Easter, and will be replaced by Steven Moffat. Star Trek makes a return to the big screen in May.

Anyone who has read his book, The Writer’s Tale, which tells the inside story of the making of series four, will know that Davies is a man whose tear ducts get plenty of exercise. But ending his tenure on Doctor Who came without recourse to a hankie

. “I’m absolutely unsentimental about this sort of thing,” he says, talking in his Cardiff flat. “I would have thought that when I handed in the last script I might have burst into tears or got drunk or partied with 20 naked men, but when these great moments happen you find that real life just carries on. The emotion goes into the scripts.

“That’s why I do the job. I find the emotional scenes emotional, the exciting scenes exciting. I laugh at the funny stuff and cry at the sad stuff. If you had a camera on me, sitting here at this computer, it would be like Diary Of A Nutter. They could show it on BBC3.”

Davies is 45, six feet six, loud, expressive and funny. Possibly because he’s gay, it’s never written in profiles that he is quite the alpha male. Yes, he suffers from midnight moments of doubt, but essentially he’s supremely confident in his talent, and the facts bear out that self-belief. His vision of Doctor Who as a soapy, poppy, flashy and yet, crucially, heartfelt drama has paid off with audiences in excess of 13 million and the complete annexing of the British mainstream.

It has also led to some interesting offers, such as Davies being invited to take part in Dancing On Ice. He declined. “But just after (Boyzone’s] Stephen Gately had been on it, I met him and he said, ‘Feel my arse.’ So I did. It was so hard it was like holding a skull. And then he said, ‘That’s what ice skating does for you.’ So there is something to be said for it.”

There will be four special hour-long episodes of Doctor Who broadcast this year, starting this Saturday with Planet Of The Dead. The final two episodes will be broadcast over the Christmas period and conclude with David Tennant’s regeneration into Matt Smith, at which point Scottish writer Steven Moffat will take over as executive producer for a new series in 2010.

“The church bells ring when Steven hands in just one of his scripts, so I think a whole series is going to be glorious,” says Davies. “We agree on so many other things, but he’s not going to come in and copy me. I have read his first episode and it’s phenomenal. There are such good times ahead.”

Although Doctor Who under Davies has been exciting and funny, there has often been a base note of sadness, specifically to do with characters being separated from one another. He acknowledges that his feelings about the death of his mother in 2002 may have found their way into the work; it’s not an experience one can address directly in art, he believes, but the emotions leak on to the page. “The day you lose your mother is one of the saddest days on planet earth,” he says, “and one of the saddest things is there’s almost nothing to be said about it.”

Davies, it seems to me, is your classic sad clown – jokey on the surface, sombre underneath. His Doctor is forever giving speeches about how wonderful humans are, but Davies’s own world view is more cynical. In the episode Midnight, passengers trapped inside a vehicle with a malevolent demon of an alien turn against each other and the Doctor in a bid to save their own lives. That’s how Davies sees life. But he feels he shouldn’t articulate such pessimism too often in a show watched by young people.

There is, however, no separating Davies from his writing. It’s how he defines himself, and the aspect of his life on which his self-esteem is based. “To me. It’s not a job, it’s not work, I wouldn’t even call it a vocation, it’s simply the way that I think, all day, every day.”

On occasion, he has written directly from his own experience. Queer As Folk, which was being broadcast on Channel 4 a decade ago, was a distillation of 15 years on the gay clubbing scene in Manchester between the start of his twenties until his mid-thirties. “I’d be out until five in the morning, get into work at Granada at nine, throw up in the toilets, then go and be brilliant at my job,” he wrote in The Writer’s Tale.

It was a period of a sometimes dangerous hedonism – and an overdose, which he’d rather not go into in any detail for fear of a My Drugs Hell headline – which ended up being dramatised in Queer As Folk. Was that series a fond farewell to his pleasure-seeking, self-destructive self? “I suppose it was. I didn’t realise it at the time, and it didn’t coincide so neatly because I carried on for a few years after that, but at 35 it was only a matter of time before they closed the club door on me and said, ‘Get out, grandad.’ And I got my lovely boyfriend just before I started writing Queer As Folk, so everything fell into the right place really. I suppose writing it did me some good. It’s all therapy in the end.”

The “lovely boyfriend” is Andrew Smith, a Customs officer. They have been a couple for 11 years but don’t live together as Davies believes he would probably kill anyone with whom he shared a home. “Bless him, he’s the one sane man in the whole world and is mildly disinterested in Doctor Who. And that’s nice. I see him in Manchester and he says, ‘How was work?’ and I say, ‘Fine’. He’s beautifully stable, so a good counterpart for me.”

Davies writes in Cardiff, through the night, head full of jokes, lungs full of smoke. “Sometimes the creative act is actually quite a sexy process,” he says. “When it’s working, when it’s on fire. You can fancy your characters, you can hate your characters. Writing has an obsessive, unstoppable quality in the same way that sometimes men are terrible monsters driven by lust.”

He believes his homosexuality had one significant influence on his writing – it made him an astute observer of behaviour.

“Nowadays there are kids who are confident enough to come out at school, but that didn’t exist when I was at school. So during those teenage years when everyone else is snogging and copping off at parties and you’re not, you spend a lot of time watching what’s going on. I think that watchfulness you develop when you’re in the closet does have an effect, but it’s not what creates the impetus to write in the first place.”

His love of stories goes back to being a child. Growing up in Swansea, the son of two classics teachers, he loved poring over an encyclopedia of Greek and Roman myths. Then there was his mother’s collection of Agatha Christie paperbacks, and his own beloved stash of Asterix and Peanuts books. Even now, he can hear the rhythm of Charles Schulz’s punchlines in his own writing.

The big question now is what will Davies do next? He has a number of possible TV projects, including one codenamed in his head as More Gay Men. He thinks, too, there’s a good chance he will go to America and work in TV there for a while. And he adds: “I do think that one day when I’m 65, if Granada would kindly open their doors, I might have a very happy retirement working on Coronation Street.”

So would he be content if, in time, all his other work was forgotten and only Doctor Who was remembered? “No!”

Not that he really cares about posterity. A resolute atheist who once cast Richard Dawkins in Doctor Who, he has no belief in the afterlife, so doesn’t believe he’ll be “looking down, beaming” as repeats of Queer As Folk are shown on UK Gold.

“And frankly,” he laughs, “in 50 years’ time we’ll all be foraging through the wilderness like wild dogs. So what the f*** does it matter what’s going to be on television?”

Doctor Who: Planet Of The Dead is on BBC1, April 11, 6.45pm